Written by Kianna Best on Nov 16, 2023. Posted in General Interest

PSN hosts Spain FAM trip

At the end of October, Production Service Network, along with a cohort of UK and US producers travelled across Spain for an eye opening experience into the constantly evolving filming opportunities in the country. From natural landscapes from Madrid to Valencia, and the 10 studio complex spanning Madrid Content City, attendees were in for a treat.

 

 

Joe Malloch, VP of Physical Production at Searchlight commented: “To just be able to provide that context of being boots on the ground as opposed to just looking at photos gives you not only an understanding of what you're looking at but also the people and the logistics behind it in a way you wouldn't get from a half hour zoom call."

 

With a hefty itinerary, exploring started from Wednesday 25 October in Madrid, where guests stayed for two nights, meeting with the local film industry members shaping the country into a global screen sector contender. From the ornate interior architectures of Real Casino de Madrid and Ateneo to the modern buildings of the northern suburbs, the cityscapes of Madrid displayed a constant juxtaposition between traditionalism and the future, catering to scenes of all natures.

 

 

"What I like is that I'm going back and presenting this trip to over a hundred production people at HBO next week,” commented VP of Production at HBO Holly Peterman. “We have so many productions going on that, you know, someone may have something up their sleeve, like 'oh, that's interesting, and I can then share all my files with them."

 

Taking on Valencia for the last four days of the trip, the FAM trio guests travelled on the high speed train from Madrid into a city of history and preserved cultural heritage. Towered by the intricately detailed mouldings of the central market and the orangey golden hues of Plaza de la Virgen, attendees were transported to another dimension of the Spanish landscape offerings. Whilst the coastal city boasts and unmatched spread of greenery, the built landscapes show their inspiration from nature, organically carved and flowing, like that of the City of Arts and Sciences.

 

 

Lisa Cochran, Warner Bros. Television SVP of Production stated: “I'm a TV person. Our budgets aren't getting bigger. The business is changing, these mergers, the studios are so different. I think we have to start being open to doing projects elsewhere. I want to go back with, 'guys, if White Lotus can be a huge success why can't TV look at doing more stuff like that?”

 

In addition to Malloch, Peterman and Cochran, attendees included Shayne Fiske, EVP of Physical Production at Annapuma, Melvin Mar, producer and VP of television at PGA, Nicole Beaudoin, physical production producer for Ubisoft, Cher Hawrysh, SVP of production at Walden, Inner Child Productions producer Debbie Liebling, EVP of production for Revelations Entertainment Kelly Mendelsohn, Nigel Wooll, producer at Bardot Films, Pistachio executive producer Alex Boden, producer for Independent Mark Hubbard, PSN Spain representative, and head of film and tv at Palma Pictures, Yousaf Bokhari, and EP and co-founder for PSN Michael Moffett.

 

 

Images courtesy of PSN